APRIL,  1914 


Bulletin  of  the  University  of  Georgia 


Volume  XIV 


Number  7b 


THE  LIBRARY 


Entered  at  the  Post  Office  at  Athens,  Ga.,  as  Second  Class  Matter,  August  31, 1905, 
under  Act  of  Congress  of  July  16th,  1904.  Issued  Monthly  by  the  University. 

Serial  Number  223 


O  7-1  .  I'i. 

G 


Extract  from  the  Minutes  of  the  Alumni  Society 


The  following  resolution  offered  by  T.  W.  Seed,  was  adopted : 
“Realizing  the  need  of  a  more  thorough  equipment  of  the  Uni¬ 
versity  of  Georgia  library  with  books  covering  every  department 
of  study  and  research,  and  looking  forward  to  days  when  great¬ 
er  and  greater  additions  to  its  shelves  must  be  made,  if  the  young 
men  of  Georgia  are  to  be  furnished  the  library  facilities  their 
educational  training  will  demand: 

‘‘Be  it  resolved,  by  the  Alumni  Society  of  the  University  of 
Georgia  that  a  committee  of  five  members  be  appointed  by  the 
president,  charged  with  the  duty  of  securing  donations  from 
alumni  and  friends  of  the  institution  to  a  fund  to  be  known  as 
the  Alumni  Library  Fund,  said  donations  to  be  turned  over  as 
fast  as  received  to  the  treasurer  of  the  University  and  by  him 
invested  in  some  safe  security,  preferably  state,  county,  or  muni¬ 
cipal  bonds,  the  principal  of  said  fund  to  remain  forever  intact 
and  the  interest  only  to  be  used  for  the  purchase  of  books  for  the 
library,  under  the  direction  of  the  Librarian,  with  the  approval 
of  the  Chancellor,  or  in  such  manner  as  the  Board  of  Trustees 
of  the  University  may  determine,  should  that  body  see  fit  to 
change  the  method  of  purchasing  books  in  the  future.” 

The  above  is  a  copy  of  a  resolution  offered  by  T.  W.  Reed, 
Esquire,  at  the  last  annual  meeting  of  the  Alumni  Society  and 
adopted  by  the  Society.  Pursuant  to  this  resolution  the  presi¬ 
dent  appointed  the  following  committee : 

M.  G.  Michael,  Athens,  Ga.,  Chairman. 

T.  W.  Reed,  Athens,  Ga.,  Secretarjr. 

E.  M.  Mitchell,  Atlanta,  Ga, 

W.  A.  Harris,  Macon,  Ga. 

J.  A.  Davison,  Camden,  S.  C. 

The  object  of  the  resolution  and  the  duties  of  your  Committee 
are  manifest.  The  purpose  of  this  Bulletin  is  to  inform  the  So¬ 
ciety  concerning  the  Committee’s  plans  and  to  appeal  to  the 
Alumni  for  their  support. 

I  shall  not  dwell  upon  the  need  for  such  a  fund  as  the  resolu¬ 
tion  contemplates,  or  upon  the  advantages,  which  the  University 


will  derive  therefrom.  These  are  either  apparent  or  will  become 
so  upon  a  consideration  of  the  resolution  and  the  comments  upon 
it  by  the  gentlemen  of  this  Committee,  who  are  most  familiar 
with  the  library’s  needs  and  its  deficiencies. 

Your  Committee  firmly  believes  that  all  Alumni  who  really  de¬ 
sire  to  assist  the  University  and  to  give  to  Alma  Mater  in  return 
for  that  which  has  been  received,  will  find  no  more  acceptable 
and  worthy  means  than  a  contribution  to  the  Library  Fund.  An 
opportunity  for  great  good  is  afforded  every  son  of  Georgia,  and 
we  are  of  the  opinion  that  the  response  to  our  appeal  will  be 
generous  and  liberal. 

It  must  be  observed  that  only  the  interest  derived  from  this 
fund  is  to  be  used  in  the  purchase  of  books ;  the  principal  remain¬ 
ing  forever  intact  as  a  memorial  of  the  love  of  this  body  for  the 
University.  It  is  therefore  imperative  that  each  man  of  us 
should  give  as  much  as  he  possibly  can,  else  the  purpose  of  this 
resolution  must  fail.  With  this  in  mind  your  Committee  has 
deemed  it  wise  to  permit  all  contributions  to  be  paid  in  five  an¬ 
nual  instalments  in  the  hope  that  the  fund  will  be  five  times  as 
large  as  it  would  be  otherwise. 

The  rate  of  interest  yielded  by  the  class  of  securities  in  which 
the  fund  is  to  be  invested  is  small.  Often  ten  thousand  dollars 
will  earn  only  about  four  hundred  dollars,  and  certainly  we  must 
have  at  least  that  amount,  if  the  Alumni  would  make  this  Alumni 
Library  Fund  worthy  of  the  University.  That  it  will  be  even 
larger,  your  Committee  does  not  doubt.  The  resolution  was 
unanimously  adopted  and  we  expect  the  same  unanimity  in  its 
support.  The  younger  of  our  brothers  are  wont  to  speak  of 
the  “  Georgia  Spirit.”  All  of  us,  however,  have  this  spirit,  the 
spirit  of  generous,  loyal,  devoted  service,  and  this  is  a  sufficient 
guarantee  of  a  large  and  useful  Alumni  Library  Fund. 

M.  G.  Michael,  (Class  of  1878.) 


The  Alumni  Library  Fund 


Nothing  adds  more  to  the  dignity  and  prestige  of  a  college 
than  the  possession  of  a  great  library.  It  is  not  merely  necessary 
to  have  an  adequate  and  commodious  building  but  it  is  even 
more  important  to  have  a  large  number  of  books.  The  Universi¬ 
ty  of  Georgia  has  a  suitable  library  building  and  an  excellent  li¬ 
brary  of  books  but  the  number  of  these  is  by  no  means  propor¬ 
tioned  to  the  greatness  of  this  time-honored  institution  of  learn¬ 
ing.  It  ought  to  be  possible  for  the  Faculty,  the  undergraduates 
and  the  public  to  find  in  the  library  of  the  University  of  Georgia 
every  standard  authority  in  every  branch  of  learning.  The  cir¬ 
culating  library  of  the  ordinary  Carnegie  type  in  our  cities  and 
towns  must  necessarily  devote  its  efforts  to  satisfying  the  tastes 
of  the  greater  number  of  the  reading  public  and  its  funds  for  the 
purchase  of  books  must  perforce  be  used  mainly  in  the  purchase 
of  the  lighter  and  perishable  literature  demanded  by  its  patrons. 
The  function  of  the  University  Library  is  different.  Its  duty 
is  to  supply  that  more  solid  literature  required  by  the  student, 
the  investigator  and  the  writer  while  not  neglecting  entirely 
works  of  a  lighter  character. 

It  ought  to  be  the  ambition  of  the  University  of  Georgia  to 
build  up  one  of  the  great  libraries  of  the  world.  Why  not?  Is 
he  too  much  of  an  optimist  who  anticipates  in  the  course  of  a  few 
generations  a  population  in  Georgia  equal  to  that  of  many  of  the 
countries  of  the  old  world  and  that  the  South  will  rival  in  pop¬ 
ulation  and  wealth  the  great  Empires  of  Europe?  The  Univer¬ 
sity  of  Georgia  is  located  at  the  educational  center  of  Georgia 
and  of  the  Southeastern  States.  There  there  ought  to  be  not 
merely  an  ordinary  college  library  but  an  institution  which  in  the 
number  and  value  of  its  books,  would  rank  with  the  greatest 
national  libraries.  Along  with  the  increase  in  our  population 
and  wealth  there  ought  to  be  a  corresponding  increase  in  edu¬ 
cational  facilities.  The  University  is  not  merely  building  for  a 
day  but  for  the  ages  to  come. 

The  Alumni  Library  Fund  has  been  started  and  all  who  re¬ 
ceived  their  education  at  Athens  ought  to  deem  it  a  pleasant 
privilege  to  contribute  to  this  fund  and  help  build  up  an  institu¬ 
tion  which  is  already  an  ornament  to  our  State  and  which  will 
in  the  future  years  help  to  spread  the  fame  of  Old  Georgia. 

Eugene  M.  Mitchell,  (Class  of  1885). 


Benefits  That  Will  Last 


There  are  few  ways,  if  any,  in  which  a  man  may  more  surely 
project  his  influence  across  the  centuries  than  by  writing  a  meri¬ 
torious  book,  but  the  genius  necessary  to  the  writing  of  such  a 
book  is  given  to  comparatively  few.  Hence,  if  the  great  majori¬ 
ty  of  men  would  do  great  service  to  the  generations  coming  after 
them  they  can  do  no  better  than  by  placing  in  the  hands  of  the 
youth  of  their  respective  communities  the  books  contributed  to 
the  world  by  the  master  intellects  of  all  ages. 

There  are  thousands  and  tens  of  thousands  and  hundreds  of 
thousands  of  such  books.  The  University  of  Georgia  has  a  splen¬ 
did  library  building  in  which  they  may  be  kept  for  use.  The 
State  of  Georgia  furnishes  over  six  hundred  young  men  who  are 
the  recipients  of  such  benefits  as  may  be  bestowed  by  the  educa¬ 
tional  training  in  this  institute.  But  the  books  are  not  here.  We 
have  a  fairly  good  library,  but  not  such  as  it  should  be.  With  the 
limited  funds  available,  the  best  possible  has  been  done.  This 
movement  of  the  Alumni  Society  is  for  the  purpose  of  providing 
a  steady  income  for  the  library  with  which  many  of  the  best 
books  may  be  purchased  each  year. 

The  attention  of  the  alumni  is  called  to  the  fact  that  the  do¬ 
nations  made  will  work  in  perpetuity.  The  principal  of  the 
fund  can  never  be  used.  Every  donation  will  yield  income  every 
year  so  long  as  the  University  of  Georgia  exists.  Those  who  give 
to  this  fund  will  some  day  pass  from  the  scenes  of  life,  but  their 
gifts  will  continue  to  do  good.  Such  monuments  are  worth  build¬ 
ing. 

A  workman  cannot  build  a  piece  of  complicated  machinery 
without  the  proper  tools.  The  finished  structure  of  a  human  life 
cannot  be  erected  without  the  proper  tools.  Among  the  essen¬ 
tial  tools  are  good  books.  Our  young  men  are  building  for  Geor¬ 
gia  magnificent  temples  of  character  and  efficiency.  Let  us  fur¬ 
nish  them  with  the  necessary  tools  to  be  used  in  this  work. 

The  great  big  questions  of  life  are  grappled  with  and  settled 
by  the  scholar.  The  scholar  cannot  reach  his  highest  efficiency 
without  much  research  work.  That  kind  of  work  calls  for  much 
reading.  That  reading  cannot  be  accomplished  if  the  books  are 
not  at  hand. 


Here  is  an  opportunity  for  the  alumni  of  the  University  of 
Georgia  to  build  an  enduring  monument.  We  believe  that  each 
alumnus  will  he  glad  to  furnish  some  of  the  material  with  which 
it  is  to  be  built. 

T.  W.  Reed,  (Class  of  1888). 


The  Library  and  the  College 


Books  are  absolutely  necessary  to  higher  education.  The 
function  of  the  University  of  Georgia  is  to  promote  this  higher 
education.  Therefore,  it  must  have  books  to  do  its  work  and  a 
plenty  of  them.  Books  represent  the  best  of  the  world’s  thoughts, 
the  highest  contribution  which  the  greatest  characters  can  make 
to  the  development  of  life.  The  function  of  education  is  to  en¬ 
rich  life.  The  master  minds  of  every  era  have  made  it  a  habit 
to  associate  with  the  greatest  characters  of  the  world’s  history 
through  what  they  have  written  for  the  purpose  of  reaping  the 
benefit  of  their  experimental  insight  into  life ’sessentials.  With 
reference  to  the  work,  our  Alma  Mater  is  doing  to  develop  the 
lives  of  the  best  young  manhood  of  the  State  of  Georgia,  the  con¬ 
clusion  is  inevitable  that  our  University  library  should  be  en¬ 
dowed  with  adequate  funds,  not  only  to  keep  its  shelves  filled 
with  what  has  been  written  in  the  past,  but  also  to  provide  for 
its  students  the  opportunity  of  coming  in  contact  with  the  ful¬ 
ness  of  modern  thoughts  in  every  phase  of  its  rich  development. 

The  handicap  of  inadequate  library  facilities,  at  present,  con¬ 
stitutes  a  serious  problem  to  those  who  are  trying  to  lead  out  to 
bigger  things  in  their  development  of  the  life  of  our  State  to  its 
highest  capacity.  In  the  light  of  the  facts  that  have  been  pre¬ 
sented  by  the  Chancellor  and  the  University  Librarian  it  is 
hardly  necessary  to  say  that  every  man  who  considers  himself 
an  alumnus  of  the  Old  University  will  respond  readily  to  the 
appeal  of  Mr.  Michael  and  the  Alumni  Library  Fund  Committee 
for  cooperation  in  a  commendable  effort  to  remove  this  handicap. 
All  of  us  are  going  to  respond.  The  spirit  of  gratitude  for  the 
new  grasp  upon  life,  which  those  years  at  college  furnished, 
prompts  our  hearts.  And  when  our  hearts  are  prompted  our 
hands  go  with  them  to  lay  hold  on  the  tasks  of  the  hour. 

John  A.  Davison,  (Class  of  1908). 


In  April,  1902,  during  the  Southern  Educational  Conference 
in  this  city,  the  announcement  was  made  from  the  chapel  stage 
that  a  friend  of  the  University  of  Georgia  had  given  the  sum  of 
fifty  thousand  dollars  for  a  library  building.  As  the  result  of 
that  splendid  gift  the  University  now  has  a  library  building  of 
which  its  alumni  and  friends  are  justly  proud. 

The  friend  who  so  generously  gave  this  building  to  the  Univer¬ 
sity  was  Dr.  George  Foster  Peabody,  a  native  of  Georgia  and  a 
distinguished  and  successful  citizen  of  New  York.  This  gift  was 
but  one  of  many  made  by  this  generous  Georgian  to  those  worthy 
institutions  whose  work  appealed  to  his  judgment  and  his  desire 
to  do  good  for  humanity. 

Nor  did  his  interest  in  this  institution  pass  with  the  making 
of  this  donation.  Every  advance  movement  by  the  University 
has  had  his  loyal  support,  financially  and  otherwise.  He  justly 
ranks  as  one  of  our  greatest  benefactors. 

His  interest  in  the  University  library  is  manifested  each  year 
by  the  gift  of  scores  of  books,  selected  with  care  and  with  an  eye 
to  their  usefulness. 

Through  the  generosity  of  this  distinguished  friend,  the  Uni¬ 
versity  of  Georgia  has  the  necessary  library  building.  But  the 
books  on  its  shelves  are  not  in  keeping  with  the  structure.  The 
University  has  a  fairly  good  library,  but  not  such  as  it  should 
have.  The  Alumni  Society,  through  its  committee,  is  endeavor¬ 
ing  to  raise  a  fund,  from  the  interest  on  which  a  large  number 
of  books  may  be  added  to  the  library  each  year. 

The  Alumni  of  the  institution  can  show  their  appreciation  of 
the  Peabody  Library  Building  in  ,no  better  way  than  by  filling 
its  shelves  to  overflowing  with  the  best  books. 


George  Foster  Peabody 


A  Word  from  the  Chancellor 


It  is  with  pleasure  and  grateful  pride  that  I  note  the  effort 
of  the  Alumni  to  raise  an  endowment  fund  for  the  library. 

Already  we  have  evidence, 
in  the  magnificent  domain  of 
more  than  900  acres  extend¬ 
ing  from  the  centre  of  Ath¬ 
ens  far  beyond  the  limits  of 
the  city,  of  that  which  can 
be  accomplished  when  the 
Alumni  of  the  University, 
with  purpose  of  heart,  set 
themselves  to  a  task. 

Another  evidence  of  their 
devotion  is  found  in  the 
gymnasium  which  while  it  is 
but  a  part  of  the  building 
which  the  Alumni  propose 
to  construct,  has  been  given 
by  the  Alumni  and  friends 
of  the  University. 

The  Alumni  have  now 
turned  their  thought  and 
effort  to  the  heart  of  the 
University,  for  all  know  that 
the  library  is  the  heart  of  an 
institution  of  learning. 

As  we  were  fortunate  in  the  leaders  of  the  former  undertak¬ 
ings,  we  are  equally  favored  in  the  devoted  alumnus  and  thorough¬ 
going  gentleman  who  has  consented  to  serve  as  chairman  of  the 
committee  in  charge  of  this  undertaking. 

We  await  with  confidence  the  outcome  of  this  new  effort  of 
the  Alumni. 


D.  C.  Barrow,  (Class  of  1874). 


Some  Library  Statistics 


Statistics  of  the  size  and  annual  book  funds  of  a  number  of 
state  university  libraries  should  be  interesting.  Note  that  the  lar¬ 
gest  of  them  are  in  states  whose  wealth  does  not  greatly  exceed 
that  of  Georgia;  hardly  equal  in  potential  wealth.  Note  the 
amount  that  comparatively  poor  states,  such  as  Idaho,  Montana, 
Oklahoma,  the  Dakotas,  etc.,  are  spending.  These  institutions  are 
new,  all  their  books  are  ‘  ‘  live,  ’ ’  they  are  all  asking  for  more  mon¬ 
ey  to  meet  needs — and  getting  it.  Note  the  amount  the  progressive 
southern  libraries  in  this  list  are  receiving,  and  especially  the 
size  of  the  library  and  the  annual  book  fund  (which  has  hardly 
fallen  below  $5,500,  and  usually  exceeded  this  amount  during 
the  last  ten  years)  of  our  nearest  progressive  competitor,  the 
University  of  North  Carolina  library.  The  statistics  of  this 
library  are  peculiarly  interesting  because  of  the  considerable 
amount  of  its  funds  derived  from  alumni  endowments. 


STATE  UNIVERSITY  LIBRARIES 

Minnesota 

Illinois 

Michigan 

Wisconsin 

Ohio 

Kansas 

Iowa 

Oregon  &  Oregon  Agr’l 
California 


VOLUMES 

ANNUAL  BOOK  FUNDS 

160,000 

$32,000 

223,000 

32,000 

288,000 

30,000 

175,000 

26,000 

123,000 

20,000 

282,000 

14,000 

94,000 

13,500 

63,000 

12,000 

238,000 

10,000 

Texas 

Washington 

Indiana 

North  Carolina 

Maine 

North  Dakota 

South  Dakota 

Arizona 

Montana 

Idaho 

Oklahoma 

West  Virginia 

Georgia 


72,500 

9,500 

51,600 

9,200 

87,000 

9,000 

65,000 

5,500 

47,700 

4,200 

44,000 

4,200 

19,000 

4,000 

17,300 

3,500 

14,500 

3,100 

25,000 

3,000 

20,000 

3,000 

45,000 

3,000 

38,000* 

1,700 

♦Only  15,000  really  useful  books. 


University  Library 
(Gift  of  George  Poster  Peabody) 


The  Library  and  the  Alumni 


PAST  AND  For  the  benefit  of  older  alumni  whose  recollections  of 
FUTURE.  the  part  that  the  library  played  in  their  college  work 
and  recreation  may  be  somewhat  humorous,  and  for 
those  younger  members  among  Georgia’s  graduates  who  were  in 
college  during  the  transition  period  of  library  affairs,  there  is  here 
set  down  as  briefly  as  possible  a  little  of  history,  a  little  of  the  present 
position  of  the  library  in  University  life  and  work,  and  a  prophecy 
of  possibilities  of  service. 


First  Library  Building,  1821-1823 


On  the  27th  of  Nov.  1800,  the  day  the  first  president  was  elected 
and  before  a  single  building  was  begun  on  this  campus  the  Senatus 
Academicus  ordered  a  considerable  list  of  books  “for  the  use  of  the 
students  at  intervals  when  not  engaged  in  their  academical  studies” 
(from  the  list,  the  august  body  evidently  did  not  propose  that  the 
students’  leisure  moments  should  be  lighter  moments).  Where  the 
library  was  first  located  is  somewhat  uncertain;  most  probably  in 
the  President’s  house.  Records  show  that  it  occupied  the  second 
floor  of  the  old  Agricultural  Building,  once  known  as  Philosophical 
Hall,  in  the  early  twenties,  and  was  transferred  to  New  College  in 
1823  when  that  building  was  completed.  It  must  have  been  largely 
destroyed  in  the  fire  which  consumed  New  College  in  1830.  The 
records  seem  to  speak  of  entire  destruction.  Older  alumni  will 
remember  the  Ivy  Building.  This  arose  at  the  same  time  that  New 
College  was  rebuilt  and  was  used  as  the  library  and  museum  for 
thirty  years.  Their  recollections  will  hardly  extend  back  to  its  use 
for  that  purpose  however,  since  for  the  forty-five  years  previous 
to  the  erection  of  the  new  building  the  library  occupied  the  beautiful 


and  dignified  old  room  in  the  then  “Library  Building”  to  which  the 
recollections  of  the  majority  of  the  University’s  living  alumni  carry 
them. 

D.  C.  BARROW,  The  centennial  year,  1876,  marks  the  birth  of  the 
LIBRARIAN.  great  modern  library  movement,  as  American  an 
institution  as  the  state  university.  But  so  tardy 
was  its  effect  on  most  of  our  educational  institutions  that  in  very 
recent  times  many  college  libraries  were  still  a  joke.  The  story  of 
the  Harvard  man  telling  the  visitor  he  did  not  know  where  the 
library  was  as  he  was  a  student,  may  be  apocryphal,  but  hardly 
exaggerated  the  situation.  The  best  of  college  libraries  were  open 
but  from  one  to  three  or  four  half  hours  a  week  not  so  long  ago; 
often  through  volunteer  Services  of  some  professor  with  a  special 
sympathy  for  students.  At  Georgia  Chancellor  Barrow  comes  under 
this  indictment.  For  some  years,  as  many  will  recall,  he  opened 


Ivy  Building 

(Library  and  museum  for  30  years) 


the  library  three  hours  each  week  in  a  service  of  this  sort.  Previous 
to  the  present  administration  the  library  was  presided  over  by  the 
lady  whose  memory  will  be  ever  dear  and  green  to  those  who  as 
students  made  her  life  a  burden,  or  as  alumni  proudly  wore  the 
colors  she  pinned  upon  their  coats.  The  gift  of  the  present  building 
made  an  increase  in  the  library  staff  imperative,  and  since  Miss 
Frierson,  on  account  of  increasing  age,  wished  to  be  relieved  of  the 
chief  responsibility,  the  present  librarian  was  appointed  to  undertake 
the  reorganization  made  necessary  by  the  move,  along  modern  lines. 
Some  may  not  know  that  largely  through  the  efforts  of  the  donor  of 
the  present  building,  Miss  Frierson  spent  the  last  three  years  of  her 
life  in  a  happy  leisure  free  from  financial  care.  She  was  the  first 
pensioner  in  Georgia  on  the  Carnegie  Foundation,  and  as  Librarian 
Emeritus  at  commencement  time  used  to  move  as  “the  chief  among 
us.” 


THE  DOORS  A  few  of  the  more  obvious  indications  of  the  present 
ARE  OPEN.  part  the  library  takes  in  university  life  and  work 
may  be  noted.  They  are  not  exceptional,  but  as  far 
as  statistics  can  be  relied  upon  appear  to  be  up  to  the  average  of 
modern  college  libraries.  The  library  is  open  for  eleven  hours  daily. 
It  is  closed  but  one  entire  day  during  the  college  year,  Washington’s 
birthday.  On  all  other  holidays  it  is  open  for  five  hours,  and  on 
Sunday  afternoons  also  for  recreative  reading.  The  amount  of  books 
used  both  inside  and  outside  of  the  building  has  increased  over  four 
times  as  fast  as  the  student  body  in  the  last  ten  years.  In  the 
academic  year  of  1912-13  the  average  daily  attendance  for  eight 
months  was  between  170  and  240,  averaged  by  months.  The  library 
is  not  a  cold  weather  refuge  as  the  daily  average  of  the  spring  months 
does  not  fall  below  the  winter:  268  men  used  the  library  on  a  warm 
April  day  of  last  year,  the  record  thus  far.  During  the  morning  the 
library  usually  plays  to  capacity  houses,  and  where  ten  years  ago 
in  the  afternoon  might  be  found  one  student  languidly  scanning  a 
paper  from  a  poise  of  easy  equilibrium  upon  the  last  vertebra  in  his 
neck,  an  alumnus  entering  on  any  afternoon  will  hardly  find  less 
than  twenty  men  quietly  at  work.  The  afternoon  average  is  much 
higher;  rather  more  than  sixty.  The  evening  and  Sunday  hours  also 
attract  a  good  sized  patronage. 

MINDING  HIS  Recent  years  have  seen  a  decided  change  in  the 
BOOK  THEN  manner  of  teaching  of  a  large  percentage  of  the 
AND  NOW.  college  courses.  Previously  the  student’s  knowledge 
of  his  subject  was  confined  to  lessons  conned  from 
a  text-book  only,  with  such  additional  information  as  his  teacher 
saw  fit  to  give  him  in  classroom  or  lecture.  Now  he  is  asked  to  read 
and  digest  for  himself  what  both  great  and  recent  authorities  have 
to  say  on  these  subjects  in  many  volumes,  periodicals,  and  publica¬ 
tions  of  societies.  Obviously  he  cannot  buy  one  hundredth  part  of 
the  literature  to  which  he  is  referred,  and  as  a  direct  result  his 
college  library  becomes  a  vastly  more  important  factor  in  his  studies, 
than  in  the  older  days. 

This  class  of  reading  the  student  does  largely  in  the  library  where 
the  books  referred  to  in  many  'different  courses  are  reserved  on 
special  shelves  for  this  purpose.  At  the  University  this  class  of 
work  has  increased  rapidly  in  the  last  three  or  four  years.  The 
development  of  this  “collateral”  reading  is  but  coextensive  with  the 
general  reference  use  of  the  library.  Over  40,000  volumes  used  in 
the  building  were  returned  to  their  places  by  library  assistants. 
As  more  readers  replace  books  used  in  the  library  on  the  shelves 
than  leave  them  on  the  tables,  an  estimate  of  a  hundred  thousand 
volumes  consulted  for  reference  use  last  year  is  probably  conserva¬ 
tive.  The  library  has  about  15,000  live  books.  These  were  used 
in  the  building  at  least  the  estimated  number  of  times.  Though  an 
increasingly  important  amount  of  the  student’s  use  of  library  books 
is  done  in  the  building,  another  index  of  increased  usage  is  the 


ten  years  record  of  outside  loans.  In  1903-04  the  ouside  circula¬ 
tion  was  800  in  round  numbers.  In  1912  it  was  6470,  and  this 
year  is  running  at  a  rate  that  will  bring  it  close  to  the  ten  thou¬ 
sand  mark,  or  at  least  ten  times  ten  years  ago.  In  this  same  period 
the  student  body  has  not  more  than  doubled,  a  considerable  portion 
of  which  is  presumed  to  get  an  appreciable  percentage  of  their 
reading  from  the  Agricultural  Reading  Room. 

MR.  DEBATER,  Younger  alumni  will  recall  the  elaborate  bibliog- 
ET  AL.  raphies  prepared  every  year  for  the  Class,  Cham¬ 

pion,  and  Intercollegiate  debates.  This  feature 
of  the  library’s  services  to  the  students  has  not  decreased  in  impor¬ 
tance  or  the  extent 
of  time  given  to  it. 
In  addition,  lists  of 
books  are  frequently 
posted  on  current  top¬ 
ics  or  subjects  calcu¬ 
lated  to  widen  the 
student’s  interest. 
These  bulletins  are 
usually  attractively 
illustrated  to  help 
bring  to  the  eye  of 
the  student  reading 
that  should  bring 
pleasure  as  well  as 
profit. 

The  above  short 
description  of  some  of 
the  activities  of  your 
University  Library 
coupled  with  the 
statement  that  its  de¬ 
velopment  has  been 
up  to  the  average  may 
lead  you  to  think 
library  matters  are 
prosperous  enough 
without  a  stir  being  made  for  library  endowment.  But  bear  in 
mind  that  you  have  a  description  of  the  increase  in  library  activities 
and  not  of  money  or  books.  This  latter  “is  quite  another  story.” 

THE  BOOK  The  University  Library  had  its  beginning  in 

AND  THE  DOLLAR,  the  first  year  of  the  nineteenth  century.  That 
century  saw  a  widening  of  the  fields  of 
knowledge,  learning  and  research,  possibly  best  expressed  for  our 
purposes  in  the  resultant  increased  output  of  the  printing  press. 
The  first  year  of  the  twentieth  century  saw  over  7,000  different 
works  printed  in  the  United  States:  more  than  had  been  printed  in 


the  entire  period  preceding  the  library’s  foundation.  Ten  years 
later  the  American  production  of  new  books  had  nearly  doubled,  for 
in  1911  over  13,000  new  works  were  printed.  Libraries  of  learned 
institutions  can  by  no  means  confine  their  purchases  to  the  book 
production  of  America  and  though  the  acquisition  of  books  printed 
in  England  and  in  the  principal  foreign  languages  is  not  so  exten¬ 
sive,  it  is  by  no  means  unimportant.  The  three  principal  book  pro¬ 
ducing  countries  printed  five  times  as  many  new  books  in  1911  as 
the  United  States. 

PERIODICALS  The  output  of  the  periodical  press  has  increased 

AND  DITTO.  in  a  nearly  equal  ratio.  We  all  know  how  the 

popular  periodicals  occupy  our  attention.  Teach¬ 
ers  and  students  of  historical,  social,  economic  or  scientific  subjects 
are  equally  dependent  upon  the  periodicals  in  these  fields.  How 
increasingly  important  the  popular  and  learned  periodicals  are  to 
university  libraries  may  be  judged  from  the  fact  that  one  western 
university  is  now  expending  the  income  from  three  quarters  of  a 
million  dollars  upon  periodical  subscriptions  and  is,  with  this  income 
in  hand,  hunting  the  book  markets  of  the  world  for  the  earlier 
volumes  of  learned  periodical  publications.  There  are  indexes  pub¬ 
lished  covering  all  the  great  fields  of  periodical  publications  so  that 
a  student,  in  this  library  for  instance,  working  on  an  oration  or  a 
debate,  finds  reference  after  reference  on  his  subject  to  periodicals 
not  on  our  shelves  or  subscription  list.  The  engineering  student 
often  in  five  minutes  will  find  scores  of  references  that  he  cannot 
make  use  of  on  some  important  problem  because  the  library  has 
not  had  the  money  to  subscribe  as  yet  for  many  of  the  most  im¬ 
portant  engineering  periodicals  to  which  our  indexes  constantly  refer. 

AND  SO  We  could  truly  say,  with  the  above  facts  in  mind  and 
IT  GOES,  remembering  the  present  intimate  and  vital  relation  of 
college  work  to  the  library  and  its  dependency  for 
efficiency  upon  not  only  the  best  but  the  latest  things  in  print,  that 
it  is  more  difficult  to  meet  the  needs  of  one  year  with  the  money 
the  University  library  now  has  to  expend  than  it  would  have  been 
in  1801  to  use  the  same  sum  in  selecting  a  library  from  all  that 
the  printing  press  had  produced  up  to  that  time. 

No  great  library  can  possibly  be  an  omnium  gatherum.  Rigid 
selection  is  a  necessity  with  the  greatest.  They  are  all  forced  to 
specialize;  university  libraries  are  in  fact  highly  specialized,  institu¬ 
tions.  But  rigid  selection  being  the  rule  it  is  still  interesting  to 
notice  the  annual  expenditures  of  some  of  our  greater  university  libra¬ 
ries;  as  for  instance,  of  Harvard,  $54,000,  Yale,  $35,000,  Chicago, 
$35,000,  Minnesota,  $32,000,  Wisconsin,  $26,000.  These  institu¬ 
tions  are  of  course  giving  instruction  in  many  more  subjects  and 
in  more  advanced  ways  than  we  are  here,  but  we  are  attempting 
instruction  in  many  more  lines  and  on  more  advanced  problems  than 
the  library  can  cope  with  at  present.  Heavy  pressure  is  brought 
for  the  establishment  of  a  new  chair,  let  us  say  for  instance  of 


Business  Economics.  The  University  trustees  somehow  manage  to 
raise  money  to  pay  the  salary  of  the  professor  holding  this  new 
chair;  the  best  they  can  do.  Our  new  professor  arrives;  makes  a 
bee-line  for  the  library  (this  never  fails).  He  finds  that  in  the 
literature  of  his  subject  we  are  non-existent.  With  greatly  over¬ 
burdened  funds  we  try  to  piece  out  so  that  he  can  have  a  few  books 
and  a  periodical  or  two  with  which  to  begin  work  with  his  students. 
Three  or  four  thousand  dollars  would  have  been  but  a  moderate  sum 
with  which  to  make  a  start  collecting  the  material  he  really  needs; 
with  our  present  income  we  can’t  spend  that  amount  on  his  work 
in  twenty  years.  This  is  a  typical  instance. 

When  there  is  a  general  enough  demand  that  instruction  in  some 
new  field  or  subject  be  given  at  the  State  University,  the  State  you 
will  say  should  see  such  instruction'  properly  provided  for.  Pro¬ 
gressive  institutions  elsewhere  make  liberal  initial  appropriations 
for  new  work  and  provide  additional  funds  thereafter  to  meet  the 
increased  current  demands  on  their  libraries.  If  this  is  so,  the 
State  you  will  say  should  enable  our  Trustees  to  do  so  here. 
Undoubtedly  true:  let  it  be  hoped  that  the  time  will  come  and 
come  quickly. 

THE  ALUMNI  But  were  our  funds  now  adequate  to  meet  the 

AND  needs  of  work  now  being  carried  on  on  this 

THE  LIBRARY,  campus  (a  conservative  estimate  is  an  annual  sum 
about  three  times  our  present  resources)  such  a 
move  as  was  started  last  June  by  the  appointment  of  your  Commit¬ 
tee  on  an  Alumni  Library  Fund  would  be  equally  welcome.  The 
library  lacks  thousands  of  dollars  worth  of  books  which  may  be 
conveniently  termed  cultural  reading,  of  sets  of  periodicals,  etc. 
needed  by  debaters  and  for  reading  for  purely  student  activities. 
Each  year  are  received  hundreds  of  catalogues  offering  these  books 
and  sets  at  prices  at  a  third  to  a  fifth  of  their  original  values.  Funds 
to  an  indefinite  amount  can  be  expended  in  this  way;  in  fact,  there 
is  no  way  in  which  the  alumni  can  interest  themselves,  where  dollar 
for  dollar  money  will  go  so  far  or  be  "so  generally  helpful  as  in  the 
manner  now  proposed. 

All  of  our  larger  institutions  and  many  of  the  smaller,  derive  no 
mean  part  of  their  library  fund  from  such  sources.  Endowments 
from  individual  alumni,  from  classes,  or  from  associations  are  numer¬ 
ous.  Buildings  may  crumble  and  fall  or  outlive  their  usefulness, 
and  other  memorials  however  costly  disappear  in  the  lapse  of  time, 
but  so  long  as  funds  draw  interest  these  library  endowments,  however 
big  or  small,  will  be  memorials  to  their  donors. 


! 


The  University  extends  a  cordial  welcome 
to  all  educational,  agricultural,  commercial, 
manufacturing,  financial  and  industrial  bodies, 
and  bodies  of  like  character,  having  for  their 
object  the  welfare  of  the  state,  to  use  on 
special  occasions,  free  of  rent,  such  public 
buildings  of  the  University  as  the  Chancellor 
and  President  of  the  Agricultural  College  may 
approve. 


